‘The Staircase': Here’s What Happened to Greg Taylor, the Man Exonerated After 17 Years in Prison

(Note: This post contains spoilers for later episodes of Netflix’s true crime documentary “The Staircase.” You might want to finish it before reading on.)

The big turning point in “The Staircase” is when Mike Peterson, after being convicted of murdering his wife Katherine and serving eight years in prison, gets a chance at a new trial. That’s because something major has changed: an expert who testified against him lost his credibility.

Duane Deaver, formerly an agent in the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, testified about blood spatter analysis at Peterson’s trial, but a newspaper expose revealed that Deaver and other SBI agents had misrepresented evidence in more than 200 cases. The big one was that of Greg Taylor who, thanks to Deaver’s testimony, was convicted of a murder he didn’t commit and spent almost 17 years in prison.

Taylor was released in 2010, notably the first person in U.S. legal history ever to be declared “innocent” by a court — not just “not guilty” as is usually the case. That’s because the evidence held back by the SBI would have exonerated Taylor, but his defense attorneys never saw it. The whole story was detailed in the 90-minute WRAL.com documentary “6,149 Days.”

The case began in 1991, when the body of Jacquetta Thomas, 26, was found in a cul-de-sac in Raleigh, North Carolina. Thomas had been stabbed and beaten to death, and nearby was a Nissan Pathfinder. That Pathfinder belonged to Taylor; when he and his friend, Johnny Beck, returned to it the next day, police arrested them for Thomas’ murder.

In 1991, Taylor was was a crack cocaine abuser, and he and Beck had been smoking in the vehicle the night before, parked up a small dirt road off the cul-de-sac. The pair attempted to drive off the dirt road but got the Pathfinder stuck in mud. After repeatedly trying to get the vehicle free of the mud, the pair decided to walk back to town. Taylor testified that he and Beck found what appeared to be a body in the cul-de-sac that night after smoking crack, but didn’t report it to police. Both men denied killing Thomas, and Taylor said investigators wanted him to implicate Beck in the crime, but Taylor refused.

Police found a witness, Eva Kelly, who testified that she’d seen Thomas get into Taylor’s vehicle. A jailhouse informant also testified that Taylor had admitted to the murder while he was incarcerated. In 1992 and 1993, 16 months into preparation for his trial, Taylor’s attorney, James Blackburn, surrendered his law license after it came out that he had embezzled fees from his law firm. Blackburn was diagnosed with a major depressive disorder as well.

Taylor got a new attorney, Mike Dodd, who said that his defense was to rely on a motion to dismiss the case for lack of evidence, and to discredit the prosecution’s witnesses. As a result, the defense presented no evidence of its own during Taylor’s trial.

The most damning evidence for the prosecution came from the SBI and Deaver. Deaver testified that blood was found in Taylor’s car, and that it tied Taylor to Thomas and the murder. The report said investigators found the “chemical indication for the presence of blood.” There was no murder weapon and very little trace evidence in the case — the only forensic evidence that seemed to tie Taylor to the murder was the presence of blood in his car. No DNA testing on that blood was discussed in court.

Taylor was charged with the murder, and eventually, a jury sentenced him to life in prison. A few months later, prosecutors dropped their charges against Beck for lack of evidence. Taylor maintained his innocence, but all his appeals failed. It was nearly 17 years later that Taylor got another chance to prove he didn’t murder Thomas. That was because another jailed man, Craig H. Taylor (not related to Greg Taylor), confessed to Thomas’ murder.

While being interviewed by the North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission, Craig Taylor suddenly broke down into tears and confessed to the crime, WRAL.com reported. The group, created by the state in 2006 to investigate questionable cases after a series of wrongful convictions came to light, was looking into another case involving Craig Taylor when he confessed.

In 2009, the eight-member panel held a hearing on Greg Taylor’s case and unanimously voted to turn the case over to a three-judge panel for re-evaluation, as reported in the University of Michigan and University of California-Irvine’s National Registry of Exonerations. That hearing took place in February 2010: If Greg Taylor was able to produce clear and convincing evidence that he was innocent, he had a chance to go free.

Defense attorneys for Greg Taylor re-questioned Eva Kelly, who claimed she’d seen Thomas get into Greg Taylor’s vehicle. Kelly said she had made a deal with the prosecution for her testimony, but her testimony at the new hearing was that the woman she saw Taylor and Beck with did not look like Thomas.

Deaver also testified during the hearing, and admitted that the SBI had conducted additional tests on Greg Taylor’s vehicle — but had not shared those findings with the court. The SBI’s DNA test showed that what the prosecution had said was blood in the vehicle wasn’t blood at all. Deaver said the SBI did not send that results of the later tests to prosecutors or to the defense, and so the results didn’t appear in Greg Taylor’s trial. What’s more, he said that holding back such blood tests, those that might exonerate defendants, was official SBI policy; the investigators were withholding evidence in every single case.

One aspect of the case that was not a big part of the hearing, though, was Craig H. Taylor’s confession. Prosecutors initially argued the defense focused on physical evidence instead of the confession that convinced the Innocence Inquiry Commission, because it was later discredited. Craig H. Taylor had confessed to some 70 other homicides, with none confirmed, WRAL reported.

The three-judge panel unanimously ruled that Greg Taylor was innocent (watch the video of the ruling here). He was pardoned by the governor of North Carolina in March 2010 and finally released from prison, making him the first person exonerated by the North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission. The state gave him $750,000 in compensation for the conviction. Greg Taylor also won a $4.625 million settlement from North Carolina after suing for wrongful imprisonment, as McClatchy reported.

According to WRAL.com’s documentary, Greg Taylor lives in Durham, North Carolina, and helps with innocence investigations and working toward police reforms with the North Carolina Center for Actual Innocence, a nonprofit that coordinates Innocence Project organizations in the state that helped him prove his case.

Deaver’s revelation that SBI had a policy of withholding evidence triggered a massive audit of the institution. It was later found that the SBI had misrepresented evidence in more than 200 criminal cases between 1987 and 2003 — and Deaver personally in 34 of them over his 25-year career. Greg Taylor’s case and the audit of the SBI led to the re-opening of Peterson’s case in 2009, as well as several others.

With Craig H. Taylor’s confession discredited, Thomas’ family, including her daughter who was only five at the time of Thomas’ murder, are still waiting for justice, WRAL.com reports. In 2014, Thomas’ sister, Yolanda Littlejohn, wrote at TheRoot that police were not giving her family any information about the case. She is a member of Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation, an organization opposing the death penalty.

Top 25 Best Netflix Original Series, Ranked From Great to Phenomenal (Photos)

There is a ridiculous number of original series available on Netflix right now — so many it's almost impossible to keep up with them. Even Netflix seems to have a tough time making sure its viewers know about its shows. We dug into the annals of Netflix series and plucked out the very best ones for your enjoyment. Here they are in order of great to phenomenal.

Netflix

25. "Lost in Space"

Netflix's take on the 1960s TV show about a family marooned on a weird alien planet, with only each other, their pilot, a robot, and a self-serving doctor for company is a lot of fun. A (mostly) more realistic take than the original, the show manages to capture an interesting family dynamic while still tapping into over-the-top sci-fi ideas.

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24. "Dark"

"Dark" concerns a small German town where children have disappeared -- just like 30 years ago. The story starts out as a fascinating, character-driven drama, but quickly starts to pick up speed with some paranormal, science fiction-y elements. There's a lot more to the mystery than first meets the eye in "Dark," and the show does a great job of weaving it over the course of its first season.

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23. "Peaky Blinders"

Cillian Murphy and Sam Neill facing off from opposite sides of the law in post-World War I Britain is enough to make “Peaky Blinders” worth a watch. But its great casting and rock music-amplified tone make it a period crime drama that’s unpredictable in a completely violent way.

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22. “The Crown”

It’s not easy being queen. “The Crown” digs into the personal stories of the British royal family as Queen Elizabeth II is crowned. Elizabeth is constantly pulled between family squabbles, politics, personal responsibility and her duties, and there’s plenty of drama to go around.

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21. “BoJack Horseman”

It takes a bit to hit its stride, but once it does, “BoJack Horseman” joins the top tier of animation geared at adults. The goofy comedy combines solid writing and a cynical look at Hollywood with a darker look at issues like depression.

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20. “The Fall”

The gritty British thriller starring Gillian Anderson of “The X-Files” fame is split between two perspectives: Anderson’s Detective Gibson and the serial killer she’s hunting. Anderson is consistently great as the no-nonsense Gibson, who hunts the killer while fighting off controversy among the police and the press.

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19. “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events”

This adaptation of the children’s book series of the same name manages a hilariously melancholy tone. Neil Patrick Harris slays the role of the ridiculously evil Count Olaf, and the rest of the show is full of great performances from a series of stars.

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18. "Santa Clarita Diet"

There's a lot to love about "Santa Clarita Diet" and it's fun take on the undead. Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant in particular are hilariously square suburbanites. The way they take to murdering people for the newly zombified Barrymore to eat, in order to preserve their family, is weirdly heartwarming and constantly funny.

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17. “Travelers”

“Travelers” goes gritty with its time travel, imagining agents from the future who have to take over the bodies of people in the past in order to stop the end of the world. The best stuff here is the personal drama as the characters battle their own guilt at the harm they sometimes have to do for the greater good.

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16. "Dear White People"

Adapting the movie of the same name into a series, "Dear White People" digs into race and racism in an Ivy League school. The series is poignant and smart, as well as hilarious all the way through as it finds smart, funny ways to tackle tough topics.

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15. “Marvel’s Daredevil”

The first of Netflix’s original shows featuring Marvel superheroes was a surprisingly dark and intense take. With awesome action and strong stories, “Daredevil” gave Marvel fans a more subdued, believable kind of superhero story in its two seasons.

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14. "American Vandal"

"American Vandal" turns true crime documentary into a comedy, digging into the mystery of who was responsible for spray painting faculty cars at a high school. The show is simultaneously a send-up of super-serious crime docs, and an enthralling and effective mystery all on its own.

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13. “Making a Murderer”

The deep-dive documentary into the investigation of the murder of Teresa Halbach stretches on for 10 episodes, but it’s never boring. Instead, it presents a look into the investigation and conviction of Steven Avery that has sent many viewers digging into the case looking for the truth themselves.

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12. “Marvel’s Luke Cage”

Netflix’s superhero offerings do a stellar job of expanding Marvel stories into perspectives fans might not be used to seeing. “Luke Cage” takes viewers to Harlem, and it’s just as conscious of the implications of following a black man who’s immune to being shot as it is of how cool it would be to have bullet-proof skin.

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11. “Marvel’s Jessica Jones”

The second partnership of Netflix and Marvel pits the super-strong but flawed Jessica Jones against a mind-controlling man she can’t convince anyone exists. “Jessica Jones” is more drama than action, and watching her try to out-maneuver the manipulative Purple Man is often more exciting than flying superhero fists.

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10. “Narcos”

The saga of Pablo Escobar's rise to power and the DEA agents tasked with stopping him is a powerhouse of strong acting. There's no shortage of crime story violence and mystery in the lengthy drug war Escobar wages, which now covers two seasons.

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9. "Mindhunter"

Director David Fincher hits two competing feelings all the way through "Mindhunter." As FBI agents Ford and Tench create a new kind of profiling in the 1970s by interviewing serial killers, the show oscillates between being morbidly fascinating and increasingly dread-inducing. Either way, it's hard to turn away from this crime story.

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8. “Stranger Things”

Netflix’s “Stranger Things” perfectly channels a 1980s movie aesthetic and tells a compelling monster-slash-government conspiracy story. It’s also that certain sort of kid-driven Steven Spielberg or Stephen King kind of story that there just aren’t enough of in the 21st Century. Season 2 is coming this Halloween.

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7. "The Punisher"

Netflix's Marvel shows have been hit and miss, but the violent, brooding, semi-noir mystery it spins in "The Punisher" is the best of the bunch so far. A lack of superpowers makes protagonist Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal) easy to relate to, but it's the rest of the extremely strong cast that makes the show so engrossing.

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6. “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”

This Tina Fey-co-created comedy starts with a strange premise — Kimmy (Ellie Kemper) has escaped a bunker after being kidnapped by a doomsday evangelist for years. But Kemper’s relentlessly upbeat attitude and the supporting zany cast make “Unbreakable” something of a weirdo answer to “30 Rock.” You’ll need to rewatch it to catch all of the hidden jokes.

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5. "The Keepers"

A true crime documentary series that looks to explore the decades-old murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik in Baltimore. Netflix's excellent doc spirals into a much deeper and more chilling story that delves into sexual abuse in a Catholic high school, and the murder that might have happened to cover it up.

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4. "Ozark"

When a money launderer has to convince the drug cartel he works for not to kill him, he has to cart his whole family from Chicago to Missouri in Netflix's crime drama. Imagine "Breaking Bad," but with less chemistry and the entire family involved in trying desperately to keep from getting caught, satisfy the bad guys and stay together.

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3. “House of Cards”

Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) is backstabbing his way to greater power in the halls of Washington D.C. It's occasionally ridiculous, but great performances by Spacey, Robin Wright, and many more make Underwood's machinations hard to guess and harder to stop watching.

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2. “Orange is the New Black”

The longer “OITNB” goes on, the better it gets, as it delves into the diverse perspectives of its women’s prison population. It’s an examination of the justice system, of people trying to make the best of a bad situation, and of friendship and survival. It’s also consistently hilarious and sports a phenomenal cast.

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1. “Master of None”

Aziz Ansari brings a rare brand of comedy that's instantly relatable. Whether it's about navigating life at 30 or the experience of growing up in America as the child of immigrants, "Master of None" has a unique, extremely funny perspective. The second season is even better with the first, mixing hilarious and very real moments.

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These are the Netflix Original Series you should prioritize binge-watching immediately

There is a ridiculous number of original series available on Netflix right now — so many it's almost impossible to keep up with them. Even Netflix seems to have a tough time making sure its viewers know about its shows. We dug into the annals of Netflix series and plucked out the very best ones for your enjoyment. Here they are in order of great to phenomenal.